West Australian Luke Durbridge has successfully defended his time trial title at the Australian Championships, overcoming world champion Rohan Dennis (Team Ineos) for the second consecutive year.
On a new course in Mount Helen, Durbridge and Dennis were all-but locked together at the intermediate checkpoint, with the Mitchelton-SCOTT rider holding the narrowest of margins, less than half a second, to the rainbow jersey.
It was a strong finish that made the difference for the now four-time national time trial champion, with ‘Turbo Durbo’ powering home to win by an impressive 17seconds.
Mitchelton-SCOTT teammates Michael Hepburn, Damien Howson and Callum Scotson finished fourth, sixth and 12th respectively.
Luke Durbridge – 2020 Australian time trial champion:
“It was a really good day and I’m a proud man to be riding back to Europe wearing the Australian colours for another year.
“It’s always a big benchmark when the world champion rocks up for the national titles and it makes me lift my level.
“I did it again and I really really happy. A lot of work goes into this in December; a lot of support from back home, family, my wife Lara, coach Ben and the team. We all put a lot of effort in to train hard in the off season, but this is why you do it.
“To win the national title is really special to me and I think that going into the Olympics this year that it’s a really good indicator that maybe there’s two spots up for grabs, and that both Rohan and I can take them which would be fantastic.”
Australian Time Trial Championship – Men’s Results:
1. Luke Durbridge (Mitchelton-SCOTT) 46:18.8
2. Rohan Dennis (Team Ineos) +17.5
3. Chris Harper (Team Jumbo-Visma) +1:52.3
Brown settles for silver
Having won the title in 2019, her debut season with Mitchelton-SCOTT, Grace Brown was eager for a title defence on the new course in Mt Helen.
The 27-year-old had to settle for second place after a monster second-half effort from Sarah Gigante (TIBCO), who added a 2020 Australian time trial title to the road race title she won in 2019.
Brown finished just nine seconds down on Gigante, the closest finish in the event since 2011. Mitchelton-SCOTT teammates Amanda Spratt and Lucy Kennedy settled for fourth and sixth respectively.
Grace Brown – Silver medal:
“I think given my form this year I paced the course pretty well. I chose to just ride by feel and not focus on power, which has worked well for me in the past.
“Finishing second by nine seconds is hard to take because I feel like I could have dug deeper and gained that time, but really I think it was a solid ride.
“All up, the result fits in well with where I want to be at this time of the season. I’m aiming to peak for the Cobbled Classics and that seems to be on track.”
